A passage from New Orleans toward Costa Rica comes with more to consider than distance. Unlit oil structures make a careful watch essential in the Gulf, while ...

Costa Rica’s Islas Murciélagos offered hiking, breaching whales, and a memorable stop away from the usual anchorages. Most sailors pass these islands by, and ...

This incredible underwater footage appears to show orcas pushing against a sailboat’s rudder. The shaft looks bent, but the rudder remains attached and the ...

About 100 miles off Kona, pounding waves broke my catamaran’s rear main beam, leaving the starboard hull hanging from the deck. Keeping the boat together meant ...

Joyita departed for Tokelau on one engine with 25 people aboard, expecting a passage of roughly two days. None of those 25 people were ever seen again. The ...

Reinforcing a hull is about how it holds together after an impact. Tough fibers such as Twaron are used alongside fiberglass to help resist tearing, with the ...

One of my most ill-fated deliveies started when an owner decided to install an air conditioner into the aft lazarette by drilling holes through a watertight ...

Launched in Los Angeles in 1931, Joyita began as a 69-foot luxury yacht built for Hollywood director Roland West and his wife, actress Jewel Carmen. Beneath ...

A damaged rudder post or shaft log can leave an opening that’s extremely difficult to seal at sea. Watertight bulkheads help contain that flooding in a ...

“Step up into the life raft” is a reminder that abandoning ship should be a last resort. A boat that remains afloat can offer shelter, water, shade, and a much ...

Five weeks after disappearing with 25 people aboard, the Joyita was found afloat and empty. Nobody aboard was ever found. The boat survived, leaving one ...

A broken mast doesn’t necessarily mean the sailing is over. With enough mast left standing, a spinnaker pole and a sail turned sideways can become a makeshift ...

They’re called “marriage savers” for a reason. Headsets keep crew from shouting across the boat, but hand signals work too, provided everyone speaks the same ...

A collision can flood the bow without flooding the whole boat. A watertight bulkhead separates that forward compartment from the living space, helping contain ...

Once the hull slips under, this Arcona disappears in seconds. A broken rudder tube below the waterline can leave an opening that’s almost impossible to seal ...

You can tell Ted Gozzard designed this boat for offshore cruising; the handholds, narrow walkways, toe rail-mounted stanchions, big deck drains...if I had to ...

Sun exposure can make the plastic parts in this style of mainsail furler brittle, and broken pieces can damage the furling line. I explain why I’m not a fan of ...

Moving a traveler onto a catamaran hardtop means that structure has to withstand enormous sailing loads. A gybe can suddenly load the mounting and cause chaos. ...

Gozzard Yachts builds only a handful of customized bluewater boats each year instead of chasing production volume. I think staying small and family-owned has ...

Both engines are diesels, but one uses simple mechanical injection while the other relies on an ECU-controlled fuel rail for greater efficiency. I would weigh ...

A covered sail is not worn out simply because it is old; I judge it by miles, flogging, and sun exposure. A sailmaker’s needle should pop through tight Dacron, ...

A cockpit that looks comfortable at the dock can feel completely different once the boat heels 15 degrees. I look for a secure spot on the leeward side where a ...

A wide stern creates enormous aft cabins because it carries the boat’s volume and buoyancy all the way aft. I do not love that underwater shape offshore, so I ...

CE Category A is the offshore design category used on many production sailboats, but I do not think the badge tells buyers enough about real bluewater ...